JP4049269B2 - Server apparatus, control method therefor, and program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a server device connected to a printer and a client device via a network, and outputs a message indicating status information about the printer to the client device, a control method therefor, and a program.

  In the print server, it may be necessary not only to perform print processing, but also to manage jobs and the status of printers that output them. Therefore, it is necessary to acquire such information on the print server and display it on the client. However, the communication load of these pieces of information increases depending on the number of printers and the state of the network lines, and all information cannot be sent or a time difference occurs, and a situation in which the current state and display are significantly different may occur. In order to avoid this situation, some mechanism is required for communication processing with the client.

  As one of them, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses a system that displays the latest state on a client. In particular, it operates so as not to repeat network load reduction and client update frequently. In this system, as described in paragraphs <0014> to <0016>, notifications are reduced by using a function of waiting by a timer using two flags.

As another technique, there is a configuration in which unnecessary messages are deleted when a communication failure occurs.
JP-A-7-175617

  However, in the system described in Patent Document 1, it is possible to reduce the amount of communication data, but depending on the timer setting interval, information may be thinned out even when there is no network load, and it may feel unnatural. is there.

  Also, when deleting unnecessary messages until the network failure is recovered, the message can be sent, the necessary messages in the queue are sent, and the printer and print status are displayed on the client display screen. Even if it is updated, the printing and printer status changes every moment, so the previous information is displayed, which is very different from the actual situation and difficult for the user to understand.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problem, and in an environment in which notification of the status of devices on a network is realized between server and client systems, effective message notification is realized and the load on the network is reduced. It is an object of the present invention to provide a server device, a control method therefor, and a program.

In order to achieve the above object, a server apparatus according to the present invention comprises the following arrangement. That is,
A server device connected to a printer and a client device via a network and outputting a message indicating status information about the printer to the client device;
Receiving means for sequentially receiving status information of the printer from the printer;
Message management means for cumulatively managing messages indicating status information sequentially received by the receiving means;
When the message cumulatively managed by the message management unit is added, if the message is not a priority transmission target, a holding unit that updates and holds the content of the message;
When the first message is acquired from the message management unit and is transmitted, if the network load value indicated by the network traffic state is higher than a predetermined value and the first message is not a priority transmission target, the first message is held by the holding unit Storage means for copying and storing the contents to be stored;
When the second message is newly acquired from the message management means and transmitted, and the second message is not a priority transmission target, the content of the second message exists in the content stored in the storage means Determining means for determining whether to do;
Results of the determination of the determination means, when the contents of the second message is present and transmitting the second message, when the contents of the second message is not present discard the second message to the client device And a control means.

  Preferably, the information processing apparatus further includes a discarding unit that discards the first message when content is copied in the storage unit.

  Preferably, the control unit discards the second message when the content of the second message does not exist in the content stored in the storage unit.

Also, preferably, the control means is present in the contents the contents of the second message is stored in the storage means, when it is not possible to send a second message to retry sending of the second message.

Preferably, the apparatus further includes acquisition means for sequentially acquiring data analysis status information in the server device,
The message management unit cumulatively manages messages indicating status information sequentially received by the receiving unit and messages indicating status information sequentially acquired by the acquisition unit.

In order to achieve the above object, a method for controlling a server device according to the present invention comprises the following arrangement. That is,
A method for controlling a server device connected to a printer and a client device via a network and outputting a message indicating status information about the printer to the client device,
A receiving step of sequentially receiving status information of the printer from the printer;
An additional step of adding to the message management unit that cumulatively manages messages indicating the status information sequentially received in the reception step;
When the message is added to the message management unit, if the message is not a priority transmission target, a holding step of updating and holding the content of the message in the holding unit;
When the first message is acquired from the message management unit and is to be transmitted, if the network load value indicated by the network traffic state is higher than a predetermined value and the first message is not a priority transmission target, the first message is held by the holding unit. A storage step of copying the contents to be stored in the storage unit;
When the second message is newly acquired from the message management unit and transmitted, and the second message is not a priority transmission target, the content of the second message exists in the content stored in the storage unit A determination step of determining whether or not to do;
Wherein the determination of the determination process result, if the contents of the second message is present and transmitting the second message, when the contents of the second message is not present discard the second message to the client device A control process.

In order to achieve the above object, a program according to the present invention comprises the following arrangement. That is,
A program for causing a computer to execute control of a server device connected to a printer and a client device via a network and outputting a message indicating status information about the printer to the client device,
A receiving step of sequentially receiving status information of the printer from the printer;
An additional step of adding to the message management unit that cumulatively manages messages indicating the status information sequentially received in the reception step;
When the message is added to the message management unit, if the message is not a priority transmission target, a holding step of updating and holding the content of the message in the holding unit;
When the first message is acquired from the message management unit and is to be transmitted, if the network load value indicated by the network traffic state is higher than a predetermined value and the first message is not a priority transmission target, the first message is held by the holding unit. A storage step of copying the contents to be stored in the storage unit;
When the second message is newly acquired from the message management unit and transmitted, and the second message is not a priority transmission target, the content of the second message exists in the content stored in the storage unit A determination step of determining whether or not to do;
Wherein the determination of the determination process result, if the contents of the second message is present and transmitting the second message, when the contents of the second message is not present discard the second message to the client device Let the computer execute the control process.

  According to the present invention, in an environment in which notification of the status of devices on a network is realized between server client systems, a server device capable of realizing effective message notification and reducing the load on the network, and its control method, Can provide a program.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  The present invention particularly relates to a print server system. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and an environment in which data transmission / reception is performed between a plurality of devices on the network, for example, a multifunction device having a network scanner or network function (a device having a fax function, a printing function, a scanning function, etc.) The present invention can also be applied between terminals using the same.

<Embodiment 1>
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a print server system according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  Note that the configuration of various terminals connected to the network 105 in FIG. 1 is merely an example, and it goes without saying that there are various configuration examples depending on applications and purposes.

  The host computer 101 generates print data for the printer 103 and outputs it. The print server 102 has a print server function, and manages printing of print data generated by the host computer 101, management of status information of the printer 103, and the like. In addition, a message indicating the status information is transmitted to the client PC 104 based on processing described later.

  The printer 103 executes printing on a recording medium based on print data received via the network 105. In addition, the printer 103 is a monitoring target of its own state (printing status and device status) by the print server 102. Status information indicating this status may be notified by the printer 103 itself to the printer server 102 as necessary, or may be notified in response to a request from the printer server 102.

  In FIG. 1, only one printer 103 is shown, but it is assumed that there are a plurality of printers. Further, as a printing method of the printer 103, for example, printers of various printing methods such as an ink jet method, a laser beam method, and a thermal transfer method are assumed.

  The client PC (personal computer) 104 mainly functions as a status confirmation terminal of the printer 103 that receives and displays the status information of the printer 103 from the print server 102 via the print server 102 and the network 105. Similarly to 101, print data for the printer 103 can be generated and output.

  The network 105 is typically the Internet, a LAN, a WAN, a telephone line, a dedicated digital line, an ATM, a frame relay line, a communication satellite line, a cable TV line, a data broadcasting wireless line, or a combination thereof. It is a so-called communication network that can be realized as long as it can transmit and receive data.

  Next, hardware configurations of various terminals of the host computer 101, the print server 102, and the client PC 104 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a hardware configuration of various terminals according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  In FIG. 2, a CPU 21, a RAM 22, a ROM 23, a LAN adapter 24, a video adapter 25, a keyboard 26, a mouse 27, a hard disk 28, and a CD-ROM drive 29 are connected to each other via a system bus 20. The system bus 20 means, for example, a PCI bus, an AGP bus, a memory bus, and the like. In FIG. 2, a chip for connecting between buses, a keyboard interface, and an input / output interface such as so-called SCSI or ATAPI are omitted.

  The CPU 21 performs various operations such as four arithmetic operations and comparison operations and hardware control based on an operation system program and an application program. The RAM 22 stores an operation system program, an application program, and the like read from a storage medium such as a CD-ROM or CD-R mounted in the hard disk 28 or the CD-ROM drive 29, and these are controlled by the CPU 21. Performed originally. The contents of the RAM 22 will be described later in detail as the contents of the memory map.

  The ROM 23 stores data such as so-called BIOS that manages input / output to / from a hard disk in cooperation with the operation system. The LAN adapter 24 communicates with the outside via a network in cooperation with an operation system communication program controlled by the CPU. The video adapter 25 generates an image signal to be output to the display device. A keyboard 26 and a mouse 27 that function as an input unit are used to input various instructions to the terminal.

  The hard disk 28 stores an operation system, an application program, and a program capable of realizing a flowchart described below.

  The CD-ROM drive 29 is used for installing a storage medium such as a CD-ROM, CD-R, or CD-R / W and installing an application program on the hard disk 28. Needless to say, a CD-R drive, CD-R / W drive, MO drive, DVD drive or the like may be used instead of the CD-ROM drive.

  Next, the functional configuration of the print server system will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a functional configuration of the print server system according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  In FIG. 3, the functional configuration of the print server 102 will be mainly described.

  In the printer 103, when there is a print job addition, a print job status change such as the number of printed pages, or a device status change, the contents are sent to the status reception unit 302 of the print server 102 as status information. Notify each time.

  The status receiving unit 302 adds the notified content to the message queue 304 (message management function for accumulating and managing messages indicating status information).

  The print data management unit 303 performs analysis processing of print data in the print server 102, and when there is a change in the state, the print data management unit 303 adds a message indicating the state information corresponding to the change content to the message queue 304. The print data analysis processing includes, for example, processing such as conversion processing of print data received from the host computer 101 into a printable format (for example, PDL, bitmap, etc.).

  The communication management unit 306 sequentially reads messages from the message queue 304, and controls notification of the messages to the client PC 104 based on the read message type and message content.

  For example, when the current print page number of the printer 103 is transmitted as a message, the message does not affect the subsequent state, and the page number immediately counted up is transmitted. For this reason, even if the message that should have been transmitted this time is discarded, the display can be updated by the subsequent message.

  However, in the case of the last page of the print data, the number of pages counted up after that does not come, but the display of the number of pages is cleared by a message such as printing completion to avoid inconsistency in the status display.

  In addition, the current state of the printer 103 may change frequently depending on circumstances, but if it does not change for a long period of time, if there is a similar message after that, the current message is discarded, and if not, it is always transmitted. To do so.

  For example, if it does not change for a long period, it occurs when a printer failure occurs and a paper jam occurs. The message similar to the message indicating a paper jam includes a message that clears a paper jam and returns to normal.

  The above types of messages are added to the message queue 304 from the status receiving unit 302 and the print data management unit 303, which are the status change notification sources, and at the same time, a message indicating the status information is sent to the status holding unit 305. Keep updated. As a result, the status holding unit 305 holds the contents of the latest information message. Then, the communication management unit 306 acquires such a type of message from the message queue 306 and notifies the client PC 104 of the message.

  If the notification fails, the latest information (message contents) is copied from the state holding unit 305 and stored in the state storage unit 307. After that, until the notification content (message content) stored in the state storage unit 307 is retrieved from the message queue 304, the same type of message is discarded before attempting transmission (that is, prohibiting transmission of the message). , Discard). When a message having the same content as the message stored in the state storage unit 307 is taken out from the message queue 304, the content of the corresponding content message stored in the state storage unit 307 is cleared (erased).

  On the other hand, in the case of a print data deletion message, on the contrary to the above-mentioned type of message, if the message is discarded, the print server 102 does not have the print data and remains in the client PC 104 as information. Inconsistency occurs in subsequent operations. Therefore, this type of message remains in a waiting state until it can be transmitted.

  Thus, according to the kind of message, while selecting the message transmitted to client PC104, the transmission is controlled. In particular, when the network load is high, it is possible to notify the change of the processing state as soon as possible by discarding the low priority message so as to reduce the load.

  Next, message generation processing in the status reception unit 302 and the print data management unit 303 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing message generation processing according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  First, in step S401, it is determined whether an event to be notified to the client PC 104 has occurred. If no event has occurred (NO in step S401), the process is temporarily terminated and it is determined again whether or not an event has occurred. On the other hand, if an event has occurred (YES in step S401), the process proceeds to step S402.

  In step S402, an event that has occurred is received, content determination is performed, and an event reception process for generating a message for the event is executed.

  Here, the message generation is to generate a message to be added to the message queue 304. For example, the state information received by the state reception unit 302 is converted into a message having a structure defined internally. To do.

  In step S403, the generated message is added to the message queue 304. In step S404, it is determined whether the generated message is a cache target.

  In step S404, it is determined whether or not the message is a cache target. The cache target flag indicating the presence / absence of the cache target (H (Hi) / L (Low)) associated with each message type in advance. Is determined with reference to a cache target flag management table (FIG. 6) for managing

  Here, the cache target flag management table will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a cache target flag management table according to the embodiment of this invention.

  As shown in FIG. 6, in the cache target flag management table, a cache target flag indicating the presence / absence of a cache target (H (Hi) / L (Low)) is managed in association with each message type.

  The cache target message is basically a message that does not cause a contradiction in subsequent operations without notifying the client PC 104 of the message to be transmitted in real time. In other words, the message to be cached is a message with a low transmission priority, while the message to be cached is a message with a high transmission priority. That is, FIG. 6 can be said to be a management table in which message transmission priorities are defined.

  However, since the cache target flag can be arbitrarily set by the administrator for each message type, even if the cache target message does not necessarily notify the client in real time, The message is not necessarily inconsistent. For this reason, whether or not the message is to be cached is ultimately left to the value of the cache target flag set according to the use and purpose of the administrator.

  Instead of using the cache target flag management table, priority may be defined on the program for each message type, and the presence / absence of a cache target may be determined based on the definition.

  An example of the message will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a message structure according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  FIG. 7 shows a printer page count message indicating the number of printed pages of the printer and a printer job addition message indicating addition of a print job for the printer as examples of the message.

  The printer page count message includes a message type ID that uniquely identifies the message, a printer ID that uniquely identifies the printer that issued the message, and information indicating the number of printed pages. The printer job addition message includes information indicating a message type ID, a printer ID, a job name, and a job ID that uniquely identifies the job.

  Similarly, messages of other types are configured with necessary information such as a message type ID and a printer ID according to the content of the message.

  Returning to the description of FIG.

  In step S404, if the message is not a cache target (NO in step S404), that is, if the cache target flag is L, the process ends. On the other hand, if the message is a cache target (YES in step S404), that is, if the cache target flag is H, the process proceeds to step S405.

  In step S405, the cache target message is output to the state holding unit 305 based on the content.

  Next, message transmission processing in the communication management unit 306 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing message transmission processing according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  First, in step S501, a message is read from the message queue 304. This message is read out in a FIFO (first in first out) format.

  In step S502, it is determined whether or not the read message is a cache target. If it is a cache target (YES in step S502), the process proceeds to step S503. On the other hand, if it is not a cache target (NO in step S502), the process proceeds to step S507.

  Note that the determination in step S501 is the same as the determination in step S404 in FIG.

  In step S503, it is determined whether or not the information acquired from the state holding unit 305 exists in the state storage unit 307. If the information does not exist (NO in step S503), the process proceeds to step S507. In this case, processing similar to that for a message not to be cached is performed in the subsequent processing. On the other hand, if the information exists (YES in step S503), the process proceeds to step S504.

  In step S504, it is determined whether or not the content of the read message includes information having the same content as the content stored in the state storage unit 307. If there is no identical content (NO in step S504), that is, since the read message is older than the information stored in the state storage unit 307, the read message is discarded and the process is terminated. On the other hand, if there is the same content (YES in step S504), the process proceeds to step S505, and all the contents of the state storage unit 307 are cleared.

  Note that the determination in step S504 is for determining whether or not the read message is the latest message. Further, the specific determination may be a simple comparison between the message and the stored information, or a comparison between the sequence number added to the message and the sequence number of the stored information, or a unique identification that identifies the type of message. It may be a comparison of identifiers.

  In step S507, the network traffic state is confirmed, and it is determined whether or not the message can be transmitted. If transmission is possible (NO in step S507), the process proceeds to step S508. On the other hand, if transmission is possible (YES in step S507), the process proceeds to step S511.

  Note that the determination in step S507 is performed using a determination function for determining the traffic state of a general-purpose network, for example, an API prepared in the server OS. Then, when the network load value indicated by the traffic state is less than a predetermined value, it is determined that transmission is possible, and when it is equal to or greater than the predetermined value, transmission is determined not possible. Here, the network load value includes, for example, the network usage rate and the number of transfer packets per unit time. When determining based on the network usage rate, for example, if the network usage rate is 70% or more, it is determined that transmission is impossible.

  In step S508, it is determined whether the message is a cache target. If it is not a cache target (NO in step S508), the process returns to step S507 and tries to retransmit the message. On the other hand, if it is a cache target (YES in step S508), the process proceeds to step S509.

  In step S509, the contents of the state holding unit 305 are copied to the state storage unit 307. In step S510, the message is not to be cached, that is, it is a message that does not require transmission. Therefore, the message is discarded and the process is terminated.

  On the other hand, in step S511, the message is transmitted to the client PC 104. In step S512, it is determined whether the message transmission is successful. If not successful (NO in step S512), the process returns to step S507. On the other hand, if successful (YES in step S512), the process ends.

  In step S509, only the content of the message to be cached among the contents of the state holding unit 305 may be copied to the state storage unit 307. In this case, the memory capacity secured as the state storage unit 307 can be saved. In this case, without performing the determination in step S508, the content of the message to be processed is compared with the content of the state storage unit 307, and transmission of the message to be processed is controlled based on the comparison result. Also good. That is, if the message to be processed is a message that is not stored in the state storage unit 307, transmission of the message is retried.

  In FIG. 5, the comparison between the message and the state storage unit 307 (steps S502 to S506) is performed before step S507, but the comparison between the message and the state storage unit 307 can also be performed after step S507. It is.

  Specifically, steps S504 and S505 are inserted before step S509. At that time, if NO in step S504, the process proceeds to step S506. End. If YES in step S504, the process of step S505 is performed, and the process proceeds to step S510.

  Here, an example of the message table held in the state holding unit 305 and the state storage unit 307 in FIG. 3 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a message table held in the state holding unit and the state storage unit according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  In the message table of FIG. 8, the latest contents of the message to be cached are individually stored for each device (for example, the printer 103) where the event occurs and for each process. FIG. 8 shows an example in which messages from the four printers A to D and a message indicating the processing state of the analysis process executed by the print server 102 are stored as messages to be cached. Corresponds to the event that occurred.

  It should be noted that the configuration and contents of the message table are not limited to this, and it goes without saying that the message table is configured with various configurations and contents in accordance with the application and purpose.

  Next, a specific example of the print server 102 at the time of message generation processing will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS.

  At the start of the operation example, the message table held by the state holding unit 305 is in the state shown in FIG. 8, the content held in the message queue 304 is in the state shown in FIG. 9, and the message table held in the state storage unit 307 is empty. Assuming that

  1. The number of printed pages in the printer A is updated to 14, and status information is generated (step S401).

  2. The state receiving unit 302 acquires state information (step S402).

  3. A message (printer A 14 pages (message type: printer page count)) is generated from the acquired status information and added to the message queue 304 (step S403).

  4). Referring to the cache target flag management table (FIG. 6), since the generated message (printer A 14 pages (message type: printer page count)) is a cache target, the message is held in the state holding unit 305 (step S405). Thereby, the message table of FIG. 8 is updated to the message table of FIG.

  5. In printer B, a device error occurs and status information is generated (step S401).

  6). The state receiving unit 302 acquires state information (step S402).

  7. A message (printer B error occurrence (message type: printer error)) is generated from the acquired status information and added to the message queue 304 (step S403).

  8). Referring to the cache target flag management table, since the generated message (printer error) is not a cache target, the process returns to the top of the flowchart of FIG. 3 (step S404).

  With the processing so far, the contents of the message queue 304 in FIG. 9 are as shown in FIG.

  Next, an operation example of the print server 102 during message transmission processing will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. 3 and 5.

  At the start of the operation example, the message table held by the state holding unit 305 is in the state shown in FIG. 10, the content held in the message queue 304 is in the state shown in FIG. 11, and the message table held in the state storage unit 307 is empty. Assuming that

  In the present embodiment, the message table held by the state storage unit 307 is described assuming an empty state. However, when network traffic increases, information on the message table held by the state holding unit 305 at that time first. May be copied to a message table held by the state storage unit 307 so that information is contained in the message table held by the state storage unit 307.

  1. A message (printer A 10 pages (message type: printer page count)) is read from the message queue 304 (step S501).

  2. Referring to the cache target flag management table, it is determined that the acquired message (printer A 10 pages (message type: printer page count)) is a cache target (step S502).

  3. Since the information acquired from the state holding unit 305 does not exist in the state storage unit 307, the process proceeds to message transmission processing (step S503).

  4). The traffic state of the network is confirmed, and it is determined whether or not transmission is possible (step S507).

  5. Here, it is assumed that transmission is possible, and a message is transmitted to the client PC 104 (step S511).

  6). It is determined whether the transmission is successful (step S512).

  7. If the transmission is successful, the next message is read from the message queue 304 (step S501).

  Here, in the following 8 to 13, a case where a message (printer A 10 pages (message type: page count)) cannot be transmitted will be described.

  8). Referring to the cache target flag management table, it is determined that the acquired message (printer A 10 pages (message type: page count)) is a cache target (step S502).

  9. Since there is no message in the state storage unit 307, the process proceeds to the message transmission process (step S503).

  10. The traffic state of the network is confirmed, and it is determined whether or not transmission is possible (step S507).

  11. Here, it is assumed that the network load is high and transmission is impossible. Thereafter, the cache target flag management table is referenced to determine whether or not the message is a cache target (step S508).

  12 Since the message is a cache target, the contents of the message table of the state holding unit 305 in FIG. 10 are copied to the message table of the state storage unit 307 (step S509).

  13. This time, the acquired message is discarded and the process proceeds (step S510).

  14 The next message (printer B 100 pages (message type: page count)) is read from the message queue 304 (step S501).

  15. Referring to the cache target flag management table, it is determined that the acquired message (printer B 100 pages (message type: page count)) is a cache target (step S502).

16. The contents of the message table in the state storage unit 307 are confirmed (step S503).
17. Since there is a message (printer B page 102) in the message table of the status storage unit 307 for the message (printer B page 100), the contents of both are compared. In this case, it is determined that both contents are not the same contents (step S504).

  18. The acquired message is discarded and the process proceeds (step S506).

  19. Next, in the message in the message queue 304, the above 14 (step S501) to 18 (step 506) are repeated from the message (page 11 of printer A) to the message (printer B 101 page 101).

  20. Thereafter, the next message (data TESTA addition (message type: job addition) is read from the message queue 304 (step S501).

  21. Referring to the cache target flag management table, it is determined that the acquired message (data TESTA addition (message type: job addition) is not a cache target (step S502).

  22. The network traffic state is confirmed, and here it is assumed that transmission is not possible (step S507).

  23. Referring to the cache target flag management table, it is determined that the message is not a cache target (step S508).

  24. Check the network traffic status again. Then, 22 (step S507) and 23 (step S508) are repeated until transmission is possible.

25. When transmission is possible, a message is transmitted to the client PC 104 (step S511).
26. It is determined whether the transmission is successful (step S512). If the transmission is not successful, steps 22 (step S507) to 25 (step S511) are repeated. Thereafter, if the transmission is successful, the process proceeds.

  27. Thereafter, the next message (data TESTB (message type: job deletion)) is read from the message queue 304. Referring to the cache target flag management table, since the message is not a cache target, processing from 20 (step S501) to 26 (step S512) is performed. Further, subsequent messages (printer A page 13) and messages (printer B page 102) read from the message queue 304 repeat steps 14 (step S501) to 18 (step S506).

  28. The next message (printer A, page 14 (message type: page count)) is read from the message queue 304 (step S501).

  29. Referring to the cache target flag management table, it is determined that the acquired message (printer A page 14 (message type: page count)) is a cache target (step S502).

  30. The contents of the message table in the state storage unit 307 are confirmed (step S503).

  31. Since the information (printer A page 14) is in the message table of the status storage unit 307 for the message (printer page 14), the contents of both are compared. In this case, it is determined that both contents are the same contents (step S504).

  32. The contents of the state storage unit 307 are cleared (step S505).

  33. Thereafter, the processing of 4 (step S507) to 6 (step S512) or 10 (step S507) to 13 (step S510) is similarly executed.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, the number of messages to be notified to the client can be reduced according to the network load (network traffic situation), so it is possible to avoid the situation where the load is continuously applied, and the message notification can be performed in real time. It becomes possible.

  Further, by giving a flag for controlling the transmission of the message and controlling the transmission of the message, more effective message notification can be performed.

  In particular, in the first embodiment, the state holding unit 305 that holds the latest contents of the cache target message, and when the cache target message cannot be transmitted, the contents of the state holding unit 305 at that time are separately copied and stored. The state storage unit 307 is configured.

  With this configuration, if the transmission target message is a cache target and the content is older than the content of the state holding unit 305, it is possible to realize the control of discarding the message as unnecessary.

  On the other hand, if the message cannot be transmitted, the content of the state holding unit 304 that holds the latest content of the message at that time is copied and stored in the state storage unit 307, and the same message as this content is stored. Is acquired from the message queue 304 and transmitted, the transmission is not immediately discarded, but it is possible to realize the control of transmitting the message if the transmission opportunity is provided once and transmission is possible. .

  With such two types of control, a message that may not be required to be transmitted can be transmitted as needed rather than always being discarded, so that a more effective message can be notified.

<Embodiment 2>
In the first embodiment, after the message is read from the message queue 304 in step S501, it is determined whether the message is a cache target in step S502. First, in step S507, the message is transmitted. You may make it determine whether it is possible.

  Hereinafter, message transmission processing according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing message transmission processing according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

  Note that the flowchart of FIG. 12 has a configuration in which the processing order and unnecessary steps of the flowchart of FIG. 5 are changed. In the following description, only characteristic portions will be described.

  As described above, in the second embodiment, in the message transmission process, after the process in step S501, it is determined in step S507 whether the message can be transmitted.

  In step S507, if the message can be transmitted (YES in step S507), the network load is low and it can be said that the message can be transmitted. Therefore, the value of the cache target flag of the message to be transmitted is set. Regardless, in step S511, the message is transmitted to the client PC.

  On the other hand, if the message cannot be transmitted (NO in step S507), the process advances to step S508 to determine whether the message is a cache target. If it is not a cache target (NO in step S508), the process returns to step S507 to retry transmission of the message. On the other hand, if it is a cache target (YES in step S508), the process proceeds to step S504.

In step S504, it is determined whether the content of the read message is the same as the content stored in the state storage unit 307. If the contents are the same ( YES in step S504), the process returns to step S507 to retry transmission of the message. On the other hand, if the contents are not the same ( NO in step S504), the process proceeds to step S505, and all contents of the state storage unit 307 are cleared. Then, the process of step S509 and step S510 is performed.

  In FIG. 12, the processing in steps S505 and S509 may be executed before the processing moves to step S507. If YES in step S504, step S505 and step S509 may be executed, and the process may proceed to step S507.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, in addition to the effects described in the first embodiment, if the network load is low, the message is transferred regardless of whether the message is a cache target or not. You can be notified.

  As described above, the embodiment has been described in detail. However, the present invention can take an embodiment as a system, apparatus, method, program, storage medium, or the like, and specifically includes a plurality of devices. The present invention may be applied to a system that is configured, or may be applied to an apparatus that includes a single device.

  In the present invention, a software program (in the embodiment, a program corresponding to the flowchart shown in the figure) that realizes the functions of the above-described embodiment is directly or remotely supplied to the system or apparatus, and the computer of the system or apparatus Is also achieved by reading and executing the supplied program code.

  Accordingly, since the functions of the present invention are implemented by computer, the program code installed in the computer also implements the present invention. In other words, the present invention includes a computer program itself for realizing the functional processing of the present invention.

  In that case, as long as it has the function of a program, it may be in the form of object code, a program executed by an interpreter, script data supplied to the OS, or the like.

  As a recording medium for supplying the program, for example, floppy (registered trademark) disk, hard disk, optical disk, magneto-optical disk, MO, CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, magnetic tape, nonvolatile memory card ROM, DVD (DVD-ROM, DVD-R) and the like.

  As another program supply method, a client computer browser is used to connect to an Internet homepage, and the computer program of the present invention itself or a compressed file including an automatic installation function is downloaded from the homepage to a recording medium such as a hard disk. Can also be supplied. It can also be realized by dividing the program code constituting the program of the present invention into a plurality of files and downloading each file from a different homepage. That is, a WWW server that allows a plurality of users to download a program file for realizing the functional processing of the present invention on a computer is also included in the present invention.

  In addition, the program of the present invention is encrypted, stored in a storage medium such as a CD-ROM, distributed to users, and key information for decryption is downloaded from a homepage via the Internet to users who have cleared predetermined conditions. It is also possible to execute the encrypted program by using the key information and install the program on a computer.

  In addition to the functions of the above-described embodiments being realized by the computer executing the read program, the OS running on the computer based on the instruction of the program is a part of the actual processing. Alternatively, the functions of the above-described embodiment can be realized by performing all of them and performing the processing.

  Furthermore, after the program read from the recording medium is written in a memory provided in a function expansion board inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer, the function expansion board or The CPU or the like provided in the function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing, and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing.

1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a print server system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the hardware constitutions of the various terminals of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the function structure of the print server system of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the message production | generation process of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the message transmission process of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the cache object flag management table of embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the message structure of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the message table hold | maintained at the state holding | maintenance part and state memory | storage part of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the state of the message queue of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the message table of the state holding part of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the state of the message queue of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the message transmission process of Embodiment 2 of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

101 Host computer 102 Print server 103 Printer 104 Client PC
105 network

Claims (7)

A server device connected to a printer and a client device via a network and outputting a message indicating status information about the printer to the client device;
Receiving means for sequentially receiving status information of the printer from the printer;
Message management means for cumulatively managing messages indicating status information sequentially received by the receiving means;
When the message cumulatively managed by the message management unit is added, if the message is not a priority transmission target, a holding unit that updates and holds the content of the message;
When the first message is acquired from the message management unit and is transmitted, if the network load value indicated by the network traffic state is higher than a predetermined value and the first message is not a priority transmission target, the first message is held by the holding unit Storage means for copying and storing the contents to be stored;
When the second message is newly acquired from the message management means and transmitted, and the second message is not a priority transmission target, the content of the second message exists in the content stored in the storage means Determining means for determining whether to do;
Results of the determination of the determination means, when the contents of the second message is present and transmitting the second message, when the contents of the second message is not present discard the second message to the client device And a control device. The server apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a discarding unit that discards the first message when content is copied in the storage unit. The control unit retries transmission of the second message when the content of the second message exists in the content stored in the storage unit and the second message cannot be transmitted. Item 3. The server device according to Item 1 or 2 . It further comprises an acquisition means for sequentially acquiring data analysis status information in the server device,
The message management means, any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that accumulating manage messages showing successive acquired state information in the message and the acquisition unit indicates a state information sequentially received by said receiving means The server device described in 1. A method for controlling a server device connected to a printer and a client device via a network and outputting a message indicating status information about the printer to the client device,
A receiving step of sequentially receiving status information of the printer from the printer;
An additional step of adding to the message management unit that cumulatively manages messages indicating the status information sequentially received in the reception step;
When the message is added to the message management unit, if the message is not a priority transmission target, a holding step of updating and holding the content of the message in the holding unit;
When the first message is acquired from the message management unit and is to be transmitted, if the network load value indicated by the network traffic state is higher than a predetermined value and the first message is not a priority transmission target, the first message is held by the holding unit. A storage step of copying the contents to be stored in the storage unit;
When the second message is newly acquired from the message management unit and transmitted, and the second message is not a priority transmission target, the content of the second message exists in the content stored in the storage unit A determination step of determining whether or not to do;
Wherein the determination of the determination process result, if the contents of the second message is present and transmitting the second message, when the contents of the second message is not present discard the second message to the client device A control method for a server device, comprising: a control step. The server device control method according to claim 5 , further comprising a discarding step of discarding the first message when content is copied in the storing step. A program for causing a computer to execute control of a server device connected to a printer and a client device via a network and outputting a message indicating status information about the printer to the client device,
A receiving step of sequentially receiving status information of the printer from the printer;
An additional step of adding to the message management unit that cumulatively manages messages indicating the status information sequentially received in the reception step;
When the message is added to the message management unit, if the message is not a priority transmission target, a holding step of updating and holding the content of the message in the holding unit;
When the first message is acquired from the message management unit and is to be transmitted, if the network load value indicated by the network traffic state is higher than a predetermined value and the first message is not a priority transmission target, the first message is held by the holding unit. A storage step of copying the contents to be stored in the storage unit;
When the second message is newly acquired from the message management unit and transmitted, and the second message is not a priority transmission target, the content of the second message exists in the content stored in the storage unit A determination step of determining whether or not to do;
Wherein the determination of the determination process result, if the contents of the second message is present and transmitting the second message, when the contents of the second message is not present discard the second message to the client device A program for causing a computer to execute a control process.

Images